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Bloodworld Locations
The following locations are of key importance to the Bloodworld setting. Lost Ocean The boundries of the Lost Ocean are the Continent to the East, the and a map will be forthcoming. However, there are some key spots to discuss prior to the publication of a working map. Wyrmspire Once, the largest city in the world before the cataclysm, Wyrmspire remains the largest known city on Scar. Built by dragons in eons past, Wyrmspire survived the Godswar more-or-less intact. However, much of the city lay beneath the surface of the ocean, but the top of the mountain into which the city was built remains above the water, creating a crescent-moon-shaped island that is mostly city. The crescent faces the East and, to the West, a decent amount of land allows for the raising of some crops and even some livestock. Near the Northern and Eastern edge of the crescent, the massive Wyrmstwin Towers raise far above the city. The Towers house the palace in which the royal family resides. The royals, the long-residing Cooke Dynasty, are ruled by the young Princess Emilia (see below). The island slowly descends from the Wyrmstwin to the sea, with the markets and the docks located, primarily on the far end. Maneuvering around the ancient, makeshift walkways can be problematic in the best of circumstances and they are packed during peak hours of traffic. To circumvent this, daredevil, acrobatic entrepreneurs called "city-runners" take to the higher, more dangerous routes in order to deliver messages or items or even less legitimate pursuits. Wyrmspire is a bustling, never-sleeping metropolis of thousands of permanent residents and even more traders, merchants, and freelancers. Crime is dealt with swiftly, the worst crimes being punished by death and others being punished by hard labor in the Penal Fields where prisoners harvest food, help raise livestock, or offer needed labor to various ship-building concerns. Prisoners who are uncooperative are dealt with, permanently, sometimes with summary execution, but often with exile to the Continental Penal Colonies. Repeat offenders are also sent to the Continent to work the various menial jobs required to sustain the island communities. Resources are not wasted on imprisonment, except for in very unusual circumstances. The Princess is the final arbitrator on law, but the many Magisters that are in charge of the city guard are entrusted with meting out justice. The Lord's Vest Inn Higher class inn located up from the merchant's quarter, near the wealthy quarter. Known for it's superb food, excellent lodging, and raucous festivities, the Inn is operated by Minter Coal and staffed by his four daughters, three cousins, and two nieces, all of whom did quite well in the genetic roulette that is Minter's family line. Spit From the Harbor Inn Cheapest inn in all of Wyrmspire. It's located very close to the Harborfront, thus leading to its unfortunate name. Madame Thisarra's A "house of ill repute, located in Wyrmspire. Bolthold The post-volcanic island chain in which the dwarves reside is known as Bolthold and lay to the West, on the border of the Endless Sea. Deep beneath the ocean surface, the dwarves have intricate mining operations powered by technology barely imagined of by the general populace of the Lost Ocean. The smallest of the islands, the most Easterly of them, acts as a port through which the dwarves trade with the other races for the few resources they cannot find or fabricate. Visitors are never allowed into the dwarves' cave complex, proper, but are treated to the wonders of dwarven ingenuity in the are that is known as Outerhold. Most of the population in Outerhold is made up of traders and merchants, but a few dwarves are kept there, some of whom learn to tolerate outsiders. The remainder of Bolthold is a mystery to non-dwarves. It is rumored that the dwarves have managed to tunnel to the center of Scar and use the resources found there to power their fantastic devices. However, no proof of this; nor any other rumor of the deepest parts of the dwarven nation; exist. The Shallows The elves live in an area known as the Shallows, which lies on the Southern and Eastern part of the Lost Ocean. The Shallows are home to immense reef structures in which the elves make their residences. Elven culture is remarkably free and the concept of ownership is something that is considered alien to the People of the Waves. Elven communities share all resources and even each other. Elves often venture from home and will spend their time among the other races learning and having adventures among them. The Crimson Archipelago The Northwest is the territory of the Blood Wizards and their nation of tyranny and fear. Beneath Under the surface of the Lost Ocean lay entire nations and cultures of creatures that live their lives underwater. Despite the fact that elves are amphibious, they tend to spend a great deal of their time above water, but the Beneathers may live their entire lives and never see sunlight. The Beneathers are mostly dangerous to surface-dwellers, having long ago developed a taste for the flesh of sentients. However, the occasional rebellious Beneather may ask for refuge from surface nations and live among the ports and docks off scraps or find work that can only be done by someone with their abilities. The Beneathers are ruled by a species of intelligent octopi who despise surface dwellers and are believed to have gained their power from an Infernal source. The Continent The strange and mysterious Continent lay to the East of the Lost Ocean. An immense land mass with strange cultures, astounding natural features, ruins of ancient cities, and horrifying monsters, the Continent is as much an enigma as it is a source of important raw materials for the inhabitants of the Lost Ocean. The Coast The coast of much of the Continent is very treacherous but areas have been colonized for use in shipping. Many people of the Lost Ocean fear the horrors of the Continent and are unwilling to live and work without the ocean surrounding them. However, there are always those souls who are adventuresome enough to want to risk the Continental beasts for the potential wealth which beckons. In order to supplement these brave souls, various sea-going nations established penal colonies where the most enduring, non-violent criminals are sent to work off their punishment. Waypoint The primary Wyrmspire colony, lorded over by Prince Fremmrick The Penal Colonies The nations of the seas tend to deal with criminals in very simple ways. The most violent and dangerous ones are generally executed, outright, and lesser offenders are generally placed in work camps for their first or even second offenses. However, multiple offenders or those convicted of more serious crimes (and even some of the violent criminals) are often sent to the Penal Colonies to work off their sentences. The idea is that rehabilitation will occur through toil and hard work. This generally seems to work, but there have been occasions of criminals unifying thanks to having served time together and committing greater crimes when they return to civilization. There have also been instances of escape, although the native population of mutated beasts that often lay nearby these colonies tends to be a good deterrent against flight. The work done by those imprisoned in a Penal Colony can vary a great deal. Much of it revolves around manual labor such as logging (or processing lumber for transportation) and processing livestock and crops. A few have prisoners actually helping with the building of ships, but this is most often done at some island nation or another. The Freelands Freelands is the collective name for the various nations of those species native to the Continent. Many of these nations have a population that is primarily of a specific race (Centaur, Wood Elf, etc.) but others are collectives. The native Continental population has mastered navigating and surviving the various dangers of the land and are willing to trade with the inhabitants of the Lost Ocean for goods that are not easily attained on the Continent, itself. However, the Freelanders are not naive and remain cautious in their dealings with the nations of the Lost Ocean. Perhaps early incursions are the cause for this apprehension, but the exact cause is unknown. The Kingdoms of the Dead Dotted along the base of the Scar Mountains, the forces of the undead have slowly built an empire over the last millennium. Ruled by dangerous necromancers who maintain a small living population, the undead periodically need to make their way to the lands of the living in order to gain subjects for any variety of reasons, including breeding, creation of undead, and even horrifying experimentation. It is not unknown for the living nations to make some trade with the undead nations, but this is not widely publicized.